Mauritania's President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz sent on Saturday a cable of condolences to King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia for the death of hundreds of pilgrims in a stampede occurred Thursday in the tent city of Mina.

In the cable, Ould Abdel Aziz said he felt sorry for the tragic incident, resulting in hundreds of deaths and injured pilgrims from different nationalities.

The Mauritanian leader prayed to Allah to have mercy on the dead pilgrims and wished the injured a speedy recovery.

As many as 717 pilgrims died and at least 863 others were injured on Thursday when a stampede broke out in the tent city of Mina during a pilgrimage ritual.

According to the Saudi Civil Defense Service, the crush took place at 7:30 a.m. on Street 204 of Mina, where pilgrims stone three pillars symbolizing the devil.

Source: MENA